Training
by Iroka
Summary: Trying to live up to her father's legacy in Interrogation Division, Ino requests Sai's help in keeping her emotions intact. One shot. SaiIno. The Last verse.


_**anonymous**__ said:_

_fic prompt: Sai and Ino train causetheyaresuperbadassandneedtotraineachother =w=_

_Verse: After war/6th hokage Kakashi (?)_

_A/N: So been getting some SaiIno requests on my Tumblr after publishing headcanons from chapter 700. Been a long time since I've wrote fanfics, so I'm pretty rusty. Excuse me while i get back into things!_

"_You have much potential as the daughter of Inoichi-san but you need a lot of work, Yamanaka-san._" Ino mocked Ibiki's voice.

In the tea shop, Sai sat across the table with his hands folded in his lap, listening intently now. Over the period the two had been in each other's company, he learned you didn't have to necessarily listen to everything Ino Yamanaka said. Her habits of droning were known to everyone and the best way was to nod and let her say her piece. But this time, his interest had been peaked. Anybody close with the heiress knew she had a legacy to uphold and she took that to heart.

"He says I'm too emotional. **I am not too emotional!**" Ino slammed her fist on the table. The irony fell onto her and her face formed into a flustered pout.

He held his hand up defensively and smiled—something Sai did when he feared angering Ino. "He has a point, there's no room for emotion when interrogating."

She let out a sad sigh, to his surprise but his face remained blank.

"I know I'm too emotional," she conceded. "not all of us received 'emotion' training like you and Ibiki-san."

The thought crossed his mind that she should have received some form of training when entering into the Interrogation Division but he knew the story that she was thrown in very suddenly and the proper training was skimmed over. He was not one to question the authority; but if he were in charge, he would not skip over credentials just to get another Yamanaka in ranks.

"Ibiki says things are a little busy now for him. With the 6th and all. He's got a lot of enemies that need to interrogated to put down any potential plots…"

"Oh." Sai replied, looking to her.

The two stared at each other for drawn out seconds, Ino becoming more visibly frustrated by the moment.

"**Sai**."

"What?"

"This is the part where you offer to train me."

"Oh." Sai said now understanding. He took mental note to work on picking up cues more.

"Welllllll?" She folded her arms, staring him down with one visible eye.

"I'll do what I can to help." He smiled.

Rolling her eyes, she smiled and jumped up from the table. "Well come on then!" He didn't put up a fight as she grabbed him by the hand and started to drag him out of the tea shop.

"So how do we do this?" Ino called back.

Sai caught up to walking beside her instead of being dragged, though he enjoyed how freely she held his hand—even if it was to drag him by force. She let go of his hand then, opting to fold them behind her back. He felt a surge of mild disappointment but got to the point.

"Danzo's training… Well, that takes years. There's the physical exertion, being locked in a tiny room for days without sunlight, the waterboarding. You seem to be bonded the most with Sakura, so we're going to need her help so you two can—

"Sai, not _those_ parts. Get to the part where you just tell me how to take better control of my emotions. I don't want to go totally emotionless."

He followed her lead as they walked towards the training grounds.

"I have a list of things that can help you. It's mental exercises." He looked at her from the corner of his eye.

"Good." She smirked. Her eyes engined with a spark that he knew happened when she was entering battle mode. He wondered if he admitted such an aura ever.

Ino picked the spot by the river and was surprised to see when Sai sat down like a bronze figure, remaining completely still.

"The first step is meditation. Then distance from the situation. Thinking logically, not emotionally. Distraction. Isolate. Deliberate. And finally; create your own moral code and ethics, then stick to it."

Blue eyes stared back at him blankly for a moment, clearly deliberating what she was told. "But… I was already taught that in the academy."

"Yes, you've skipped over the very basics. You couldn't do Danzo's training even if you wanted."

Her eyes lit with a range of emotions that were mostly anger. Deciding better against it, she went into the _seiza_ meditating position and closed her eyes. Meditating until she didn't feel anything anymore, how hard could that be?

An unplanned smile broke on Sai's face as he stood and took a spot over by a tree.

"You don't have to stay here, you know." Ino spoke with eyes still closed. "You're right, I can't even complete the basics… I think I'll be here awhile."

Sai took out his drawing pad and began sketching.

After sometime, Ino let out a slow breath through her nose and opened her eyes, scanning for Sai. Perched up against the tree, her curiosity was peaked at what he was drawing, she knew they ranged from random subjective art to sketches of his surroundings.

"That part was easy," She commented taking a seat beside him under the shade.

"Then you weren't doing it correctly." He observed.

She looked at him working on the final stages of shading the piece. "Looks like a Bodhisattva." She gave a half smile. Clearly he took the site of her meditating and took liberty to create a scenery and woman much more improved than what he was seeing. "It's beautiful, your art speaks with so much… feeling."

"Such as yourself?" He replied absently shading.

"I can't even tell if that was a compliment or insult." She shook her head. "I don't know if I'm cut out for this. Everything I do, I _feel _it. Meditating, your art, interrogating some asshole calling me 'baby cheeks'! I feel it."

He knew this was the part you offer one words of wisdom and comfort, though he had a few years of practice now with this, he found Ino to be one of the biggest challenges with comforting.

"My art, when I'm with you, it tends to look like this."

"Like what?" She looked back and forth from him to the piece, trying to see it.

"Like… this. Majestic, feminine and with feeling."

Her face softened and their eyes met. "Do you think that's a good thing?"

"I do." He replied frankly. "But maybe try and keep yourself more collected when trying to get information?"

"And you try and have a better tone when you're being sweet." Ino laughed.

"Are you going to train me on it?" He smiled.

Ino stood laughing, dragging Sai up by his arm with her.

A/N: I just love how Ino and Sai get together because her bossy, confident yet sweet personality is just such a range of emotions that I love. I can see her trying so hard to live up to her dad's caliber at Interrogation Division and trying to be like him but struggling. And then she's with Sai here who also can be so stoned-face and she has envious moments. So cute 'cause Sai really loves her being so freely emotional. Mutual envy. ;~;


End file.
